Foreign finance and insurance businesses affiliated with Australian resident businesses generated $21.2b in gross value added in 2009-10, according to new figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Australian resident businesses had 1,245 finance and insurance foreign affiliates that employed over 75,000 staff.

Finance and insurance foreign affiliates recorded 92% of their sales revenue for finance and insurance services in the host country of the foreign affiliate. This indicates that the foreign affiliates were primarily established to service the markets where they resided.

Foreign affiliates residing in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America together accounted for more than 54% of all key measures of finance and insurance foreign affiliate trade activity, including:

  • number of foreign affiliates
  • employment and wages/salaries of foreign affiliates
  • sales and purchases of services.


Further information is available in the new publication Australian Outward Finance and Insurance Foreign Affiliates Trade, 2009-10 (cat. no. 5485.0).